El Pasoans split on troop surge

President Bush's announcement Wednesday evening that he would send about 21,500 more soldiers and Marines to Iraq drew a mixed reaction from El Paso residents, and local officials said they weren't aware he planned to use Fort Bliss Patriot missile units to defend U.S. allies in the region.

Bush had been expected to announce that he would send a "surge" of troops to Baghdad and to Al Anbar Province in an effort to stop sectarian violence and control the al-Quaida insurgency so the country's fledgling government can establish itself.

"We don't have the capability to escalate even to this minimal level," said U.S. Rep. Silvestre Reyes, D-Texas, referring to the availability of troops. "The president has not changed direction, but is simply changing tactics.

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Reyes, who met with Bush on Tuesday to review the plan, said sending more troops removes any incentive the Iraqi government had to take responsibility for the safety of its own citizens. He added that Bush was continuing his "go-it-alone" approach, rather than trying to find diplomatic solutions.

Although Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas, said the plan provides "a real opportunity for peace and stability in Iraq," he also said he was "hopeful the president's plan will be successful" and said it may be the final opportunity for peace.

"As the president made clear, the stakes could not be higher," Cornyn said in a statement. "America is engaged in a war with Islamic radicals, and Iraq is the front line in that war.

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If we leave before Iraq is able to secure, govern and defend itself, America will never be safe."

Reyes said there was no mention during the meeting of sending Patriot units, which are stationed at Fort Bliss. "That's the first I've heard of that," he said.

In his speech, Bush said: "We're also taking other steps to bolster security in Iraq and protect American interests in the Middle East. ... We will expand intelligence sharing and deploy Patriot air defense systems to reassure our friends and allies."

However, a Fort Bliss official said she could provide no further details.

"I have not heard anything about going anywhere or doing anything like that," said post spokeswoman Jean Offutt. She added that there may be plans at the Department of the Army or Pentagon level of which she is not aware.

In the Tuesday meeting, Reyes said, the president assured him that Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki had promised to supply soldiers in support of the effort and not to tolerate interference from militias, even those that support his Shiite majority in the government. Al-Maliki has failed to keep similar promises for past stability operations in Baghdad, Reyes said, which ultimately led to their failure.

"I asked them (Bush and other administration officials at the meeting), What if this isn't successful? What are the benchmarks? Where is the accountability?" Reyes said. "There is none."

Bush said that Iraqi troops and police should be leading security and stability operations by November, and that the United States would begin to focus more on training and supporting Iraqi forces.

Ron Holmes, a retired Marine and a veterans advocate in El Paso, said he thought the plan could work if the administration could follow through.

"We could cut and run. We can kiss it goodbye, and I would be ashamed of that," Holmes said. "I don't want the families of the soldiers who died to think it was all for nothing."

El Paso residents opposed to the war said the president had opened the possibility of expanding the conflict to Iran and Syria. Bush said he would stop any aid or personnel supporting the insurgency coming from those countries.

"It was an immensely disappointing set of airy promises," said Joe Heyman, an El Paso resident and member of the Border Peace Presence. "It was just designed to give political cover to his enormous failure with the war in Iraq."

El Pasoan DeLeon B. L. Weston, past Department of Texas commander of the Military Order of the Purple Heart, said that he didn't support withdrawal but that the solution would have to be political.

"I've been on the giving end of showing strength by numbers and the type and size of equipment," said Weston, who served two tours in Vietnam. "If you're not in the political arena at the end of this, it doesn't really matter. They can out-wait you."

The outgoing chief of staff of the Army, Gen. Peter J. Schoomaker, who warned that his force "will break" without thousands more active duty soldiers and more reserves and National Guard, was at Fort Bliss Wednesday attending a conference for the nation's top noncommissioned officers. He declined an interview request.

In December, Schoomaker told a commission that will recommend policy and budget changes for reserve units this year, "At this pace ... we will break the active component."

Also attending the conference Wednesday at Biggs Army Airfield were the top noncommissioned officers for the Army Reserve and the Army National Guard.

"There's always a contingency plan to deal with issues of this nature. So we'll be prepared to help him (Bush)," said Command Sgt. Maj. of the Army Reserve Leon Caffie.

The Army National Guard and Army Reserve have been streamlining the mobilization process, which can shorten the "boots-on-ground" time in Iraq, but allows for more deployments, said Army National Guard Command Sgt. Maj. John D. Gipe.

He said the old approach involved repetitive processes that extended the time it took to get soldiers in and out of Iraq. Because a reserve or Guard soldier can be deployed for only a total of 24 months in his or her service, those forces ended up with soldiers whose remaining time wasn't long enough for another deployment.

"That's why you hear them saying that the Guard and reserve are used up," Gipe said.

However, both Caffie and Gipe said many of the soldiers have volunteered for assignments that go beyond the 24 months. And the new procedures are expected to reduce mobilization training and qualification from six months to about "six or seven weeks," Gipe said.

"The Guard's never failed a mission yet and if they tell us they need soldiers, we'll give them soldiers and units. We'll do it," Gipe said. "That's what we do."